Rudy Ludaway

I guess Rudy Ludaway came from Georgia as this fine deep ballad appeared
on two obscure discs from the state before being licensed to UA. Trying
To Make It Home has a finely wrought melody and writer Rudy’s
light tenor suits it very well. The guitar, piano and horns contribute to
the overall feel. A southern soul beauty in the grand manner. Soul songs
about Vietnam have become quite fashionable after Greg Burgess’ pioneering
article in Juke Blues but this one seems to have slipped the net. The flip
is a pleasant enough beat ballad.

Which release came first? Well since the Galico says the publishing is Awake
Music I’d say the Awake was the earlier one. Macon entrepreneur Bobby
Smith has his name on the Galico 45 so it may well have been him who found
the UA connection – although his usual outlet for national distribution
was of course King.

Sadly Rudy’s other 45 for Neal Hemphill’s Goodie Train is rather
messy funk. Best avoided.